March 16, 2018
Jeff Salazar Appointed New Trustee
Prominent industrial designer and business leader brings passion and drive to ArtCenter’s culture of innovation
In a move to strengthen a multitalented leadership core, ArtCenter College of Design has appointed prominent industrial designer Jeff Salazar to its Board of Trustees. As one of McKinsey & Company’s first design partners, Salazar is passionate about building a world-class creative engine that fuels unrivaled design impact for industry. In leading the growth of McKinsey’s Design practice, he’s driven to continually elevate the value of design, and to evolve the definition, practice and delivery of design across a broad range of highly complex industry challenges.
“In order to provide the best education for our students, we’re growing ArtCenter’s Board of Trustees to bring more breadth and depth of experience to the institution,” said Board Chairman Robert C. Davidson Jr. “Jeff’s expertise at blending the design practice into the business consulting realm is extremely valuable to our community.”
“Joining ArtCenter’s Board is an opportunity to give back to my alma mater,” said Salazar. “I have a deep respect for the alumni, faculty and students who make up this extraordinarily creative culture and I’m grateful to join the leadership as we work to make the College the best it can possibly be for the next generation of artists and designers.”
“Given his passion and impressive record of innovation as well as his leadership role in the business and design impact space, Jeff brings a much-needed perspective to the Board,” said ArtCenter President Lorne Buchman, who also serves on the Board of Trustees.
Salazar is currently the North American leader of McKinsey Design’s Customer Experience Design practice, and is energized by the opportunity to weave together deep analytics, operational insights and business strategy with human-centered design methodologies and mindsets, to craft and deliver highly relevant and impactful brand experiences. He joined LUNAR in 1994 and has received numerous awards for his work including a Gold award from the Industrial Designer’s Society of America (IDSA) for the Nova Cruz eX3 Electric Scooter, the Chicago Athenaeum’s Good Design Award and an iF Hannover award for projects like the Phillips Velo Handheld PC and Intuitive Surgical’s DaVinci Robot.
In 2011, he was honored as an IDSA Design CATALYST award winner for the Oral-B Cross Action toothbrush considered the most ergonomically designed mass market toothbrush ever created. The toothbrush has remained in production and virtually unchanged since 1999. The product has contributed to continued category dominance for Oral-B and better dental health and hygiene for millions of people around the world. The CATALYST award recognizes products that exemplify how design can be leveraged to better serve realizable impact for business.
Founded in 1984 in Palo Alto, California, LUNAR has worked with many leading companies, including Apple, Nike, Siemens, Motorola, and Oral-B. LUNAR’s vast and influential body of work has recently been recognized by a 2014 U.S. National Design Award for Product Design, from the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. In 2015, LUNAR was acquired by McKinsey, the preeminent business consulting firm, creating a synergy for unprecedented business and design impact.
“Jeff was brought into the fold by current Trustee and ArtCenter alumnus Kit Hinrichs,” Davidson added. “Kit has proven to be an engaged and dedicated Trustee. We’re extremely grateful for his leadership and his advocacy on behalf of the College.”
Additional biographic information about Salazar is on the ArtCenter Trustees webpage.
About ArtCenter College of Design
Founded in 1930 and located in Pasadena, California, ArtCenter College of Design (artcenter.edu) is a global leader in art and design education. ArtCenter offers 11 undergraduate and seven graduate degrees in a wide variety of industrial design disciplines as well as visual and applied arts. In addition to its top-ranked academic programs, the College also serves members of the Greater Los Angeles region through a highly regarded series of year-round educational programs for all ages and levels of experience. Renowned for both its ties to industry and social impact initiatives, ArtCenter is the first design school to receive the United Nations’ Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) status. Throughout the College’s long and storied history, ArtCenter alumni have had a profound impact on popular culture, the way we live and important issues in our society.
Contact:
Teri Bond
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O 626 396-2385
M 310 738-2077
teri.bond@artcenter.edu
